Antoine Griezmann, forward for Atlético de Madrid, is ruled out for the second leg match of the Copa del Rey semifinals against Athletic, as confirmed by Diego Simeone, his coach, who stated they need him "to recover well" and praised the "great effort" of the attacker to be available.

The all-time leading scorer for Atlético, with 175 goals, suffered a moderate sprain in his right ankle in last Tuesday's match against Inter Milan at San Siro, in the Champions League round of 16; he missed the game last Saturday against Almería and will also be unable to play this Thursday in Bilbao.

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"Antoine will not participate in the match. We need him to recover well. Surely he will. He made a tremendous effort to try to be available, but well, with the peace of mind of knowing that the teammates who will enter will do it in the best way," he assessed in the press conference at the Ciudad Deportiva de Majadahonda.

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Simeone's game plan remains unchanged due to the absence of the French international. "I didn't expect to have him available for this match, despite the great effort he made to be with the group, so I already had other situations in mind," explained the coach, who has tested Ángel Correa in Griezmann's usual position. Álvaro Morata will also return to the attack.

The coach did not reveal whether the French player will travel to support the team beyond his absence due to the ankle sprain. "There are many questions. I can't answer so much," responded the Argentine coach.